Wednesday, December 19, 2007

While on a tech support call this morning, I started a Yugma session and had the teacher login to the session so I could help with the problem. It wasn't a major issue that warranted me driving 10 miles to the school, but I did need to see what she saw in order to fix it. I gave her control and watched as she tried to do what she needed to do and was able to remedy the issue right away.

Tools like this save lots of time and $$ if we only know they exist. Before my discovering Yugma I would have spent a few frustrating minutes on the phone while the person tried to explain what was happening. Or they would have grown frustrated with me as I tried to explain what to do without seeing exactly what they were doing. With just a few clicks we're connected and can remedy simple distress calls in no time.

I haven't played with Yugma that much in a while. I had basically just used it for demos and tech support, so I was surprised by the features I found in the free version.

1) People can view your desktop as well as allowing you to pass the presentation along to another person so you can view their computer. The paid version allows them to take over your desktop.

2) There is a public and private chat.

3) My favorite feature is the annotation tool. You can draw lines, circle, highlight and write on the computer screen. You can set up a whiteboard for notes, take a snapshot of the screen and even record what you're doing.

All in all it's a nifty little site that can be a tremendous help. If you haven't seen Yugma in action, then check out this 3 minute video.

This is Connie from Yugma. On behalf of Yugma with our One Year Anniversary, I would like to thank you for mentioning us on your site and helping us to spread the word about our product. The blogging community had had an integral part in making Yugma one of the fastest growing real-time web collaborations services in 2007 with over 100,000 users to date.

To express our thanks, we’re donating/sponsoring Yearly Premium Yugma accounts (valued at $99.50) to bloggers who simply ask. To learn more about this program and how to get your sponsored Yugma account, check out the details on the Yugma blog – linked below. http://www.yugma.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=261&Itemid=1

Please be sure to check this out soon! The window to request your account through the Yugma Blogger Program will be through the end of January, 2008.